One of my favorite wading birds is the beautiful green heron. These birds will actually use tools! They will often drop bait (feathers, twigs, insects, etc) on the top of water to lure small fish in and then go after the attracted fish! How cool is that!? They often will walk slowly or stand still when hunting and just wait for prey to come within striking distance. This species is widely distributed and can be found in most wetlands during the summer. They form monogamous pairs that nest alone (but sometimes they form small colonies). Their nests are small baskets of sticks typically placed near water in trees but sometimes can be found quite a distance from water. Both parents incubate the nest for 19-25 days and the young hang around to be fed by ma and pa for about 17 days. I am always amused when I accidentally disturb them and they ruffle the shaggy cresy so they look like they have a mohawk.
One of my favorite wading birds is the beautiful green heron. These birds will actually use tools! They will often drop bait (feathers, twigs, insects, etc) on the top of water to lure small fish in and then go after the attracted fish! How cool is that!? They often will walk slowly or stand still when hunting and just wait for prey to come within striking distance. This species is widely distributed and can be found in most wetlands during the summer. They form monogamous pairs that nest alone (but sometimes they form small colonies). Their nests are small baskets of sticks typically placed near water in trees but sometimes can be found quite a distance from water. Both parents incubate the nest for 19-25 days and the young hang around to be fed by ma and pa for about 17 days. I am always amused when I accidentally disturb them and they ruffle the shaggy cresy so they look like they have a mohawk.
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